1 00:00:13,681 --> 00:00:15,641 It's mid-winter, 1230. 2 00:00:15,721 --> 00:00:20,121 A horrific scene is played out in the middle of a busy market square. 3 00:00:30,881 --> 00:00:32,561 An infant child is held up to the crowds. 4 00:00:32,641 --> 00:00:35,161 (BABY CRIES) 5 00:00:36,361 --> 00:00:38,681 Seconds later, she's dead. 6 00:00:40,121 --> 00:00:43,641 Her small corpse lies discarded in the mud, 7 00:00:43,721 --> 00:00:47,521 her brains splattered across the column of the market cross. 8 00:00:50,961 --> 00:00:53,761 Not far from the scene sits the man who ordered her murder. 9 00:00:53,841 --> 00:00:58,361 Meet Alexander II, King of the Scots. 10 00:01:00,321 --> 00:01:01,961 70 years later, 11 00:01:02,041 --> 00:01:05,681 the skin is flayed from the back of a hated English cleric. 12 00:01:08,761 --> 00:01:12,281 Meet the man who had that skin fashioned into a sword belt - 13 00:01:12,361 --> 00:01:16,841 William Wallace, rebel, fugitive. 14 00:01:17,961 --> 00:01:21,281 This is the story of two ruthless men - 15 00:01:21,361 --> 00:01:25,921 Alexander II, who forged Scotland in blood and violence. 16 00:01:27,881 --> 00:01:29,321 And William Wallace, 17 00:01:29,401 --> 00:01:32,641 whose resistance to the nation-breaking King of England, 18 00:01:32,721 --> 00:01:36,161 hammered national consciousness into the Scots. 19 00:02:14,401 --> 00:02:18,801 This is the River Tay, just north of Perth. 20 00:02:20,321 --> 00:02:22,201 It runs past Scone, 21 00:02:22,281 --> 00:02:25,881 the ancient inauguration site of the kings of Scotland. 22 00:02:27,961 --> 00:02:31,281 On a cold December morning in 1214, 23 00:02:31,361 --> 00:02:35,481 a 16-year-old boy journeyed across this river heading for Scone. 24 00:02:35,561 --> 00:02:38,601 His elderly father William had died the night before, 25 00:02:38,681 --> 00:02:40,681 but there was no time for mourning. 26 00:02:40,761 --> 00:02:42,721 This quick-tempered teenager 27 00:02:42,801 --> 00:02:47,561 was about to become the next king of Scots, Alexander II. 28 00:02:54,441 --> 00:02:57,961 Alexander is descended from a powerful dynasty of kings, 29 00:02:58,041 --> 00:03:00,681 traditionally known as the Canmores. 30 00:03:00,761 --> 00:03:03,001 A family who, for generations, 31 00:03:03,081 --> 00:03:05,721 fought to preserve their bloodline and kingdom. 32 00:03:06,721 --> 00:03:08,561 Alexander was an only son. 33 00:03:08,641 --> 00:03:12,241 From a young age, he'd been destined for greatness, 34 00:03:12,321 --> 00:03:15,521 but he wasn't Alexander the Great just yet. 35 00:03:17,481 --> 00:03:19,001 The kingdom he inherited 36 00:03:19,081 --> 00:03:21,961 was smaller than the Scotland we recognise today. 37 00:03:22,041 --> 00:03:23,481 It rubbed shoulders 38 00:03:23,561 --> 00:03:27,001 with a patchwork of other peoples and different languages. 39 00:03:28,201 --> 00:03:31,641 To the north, the Earldoms of Caithness and Sutherland. 40 00:03:31,721 --> 00:03:36,001 To the west, the Gaels of the Hebrides and the Isles. 41 00:03:36,081 --> 00:03:40,601 And in the south, the fiercely independent Lordship of Galloway. 42 00:03:40,681 --> 00:03:46,161 But England, England was bigger, stronger, richer than them all. 43 00:03:46,241 --> 00:03:49,041 And for nearly 200 years, 44 00:03:49,161 --> 00:03:52,041 the English kings said the Kingdom of Scots belonged to them. 45 00:03:52,121 --> 00:03:54,201 The English were the overlords. 46 00:03:54,281 --> 00:03:56,001 It was all a game 47 00:03:56,081 --> 00:03:58,001 in which what you said you owned 48 00:03:58,081 --> 00:04:00,921 mattered every bit as much as what you actually held. 49 00:04:03,081 --> 00:04:05,601 The early Canmores had played the game, 50 00:04:05,681 --> 00:04:08,121 had recognised English superiority, 51 00:04:08,201 --> 00:04:13,521 but subservience was not Alexander's style. 52 00:04:13,601 --> 00:04:15,561 As far as Alexander was concerned, 53 00:04:15,641 --> 00:04:18,281 he was every bit the equal of an English king. 54 00:04:18,361 --> 00:04:20,761 Call it brash, call it arrogant, 55 00:04:20,881 --> 00:04:24,681 he was on a mission to free his kingship from English overlordship 56 00:04:24,761 --> 00:04:26,241 once and for all. 57 00:04:33,001 --> 00:04:35,561 But Alexander had a problem. 58 00:04:35,641 --> 00:04:38,321 If he hoped to free Scotland from overlordship, 59 00:04:38,401 --> 00:04:40,921 he would first have to resolve a bitter dispute 60 00:04:41,001 --> 00:04:45,521 with the king of England, King John. 61 00:04:45,601 --> 00:04:50,721 Northumbria, Cumberland and Westmorland were territories 62 00:04:50,801 --> 00:04:54,401 to which both the kings of England and the kings of Scots laid claim. 63 00:04:56,321 --> 00:05:00,121 To settle the argument, Alexander's father had given both money 64 00:05:00,201 --> 00:05:03,081 and two of his daughters to King John of England. 65 00:05:07,481 --> 00:05:09,401 But John had reneged on the deal. 66 00:05:09,481 --> 00:05:16,001 Now Alexander was determined to take back what was rightfully his. 67 00:05:23,601 --> 00:05:26,841 Alexander wasn't the only one with a grudge against King John. 68 00:05:26,961 --> 00:05:31,241 There was a long queue of English barons with similar grievances. 69 00:05:39,081 --> 00:05:42,201 Their biggest gripe against King John was that he had bled them dry 70 00:05:42,281 --> 00:05:46,161 with his constant requests for money to fund his war in France. 71 00:05:46,241 --> 00:05:50,721 In protest, they drew up a list of over 60 demands. 72 00:05:50,801 --> 00:05:53,281 MAN: (READS) "All hostages and charters shall... 73 00:05:53,361 --> 00:05:55,921 "All cities, boroughs, towns and ports shall enjoy... 74 00:05:56,001 --> 00:05:58,161 "Officials will not seize any land... 75 00:05:58,241 --> 00:06:02,161 "Ye shall do this without destruction or damage..." 76 00:06:02,241 --> 00:06:05,201 NEIL OLIVER: The document became known as Magna Carta. 77 00:06:05,281 --> 00:06:09,361 The barons added Alexander's claim to the disputed northern territories 78 00:06:09,441 --> 00:06:12,521 to the bottom of the list, in Clause 59. 79 00:06:12,601 --> 00:06:17,001 A promise to "do right" by Alexander, King of the Scots. 80 00:06:17,081 --> 00:06:19,961 MAN: (READS) "Alexander, the King of the Scots, 81 00:06:20,041 --> 00:06:22,841 "concerning the return of his sisters and hostages, 82 00:06:22,921 --> 00:06:24,521 "and his liberties and his right, 83 00:06:24,601 --> 00:06:26,641 "according to the way in which we..." 84 00:06:26,721 --> 00:06:30,401 NEIL OLIVER: King John had no option but to agree to the barons' demands. 85 00:06:30,481 --> 00:06:32,721 He affixed his seal to the charter. 86 00:06:34,201 --> 00:06:36,081 But no sooner had he done so, 87 00:06:36,161 --> 00:06:39,161 he rejected it, calling it "mere foolishness". 88 00:06:42,561 --> 00:06:44,521 Enough was enough. 89 00:06:47,001 --> 00:06:49,721 The barons decided to rid themselves of King John. 90 00:06:49,801 --> 00:06:52,481 England plunged into civil war. 91 00:06:53,841 --> 00:06:56,121 This was too good an opportunity to miss. 92 00:06:56,201 --> 00:07:00,361 A chance to reclaim the border lands he believed were rightfully his. 93 00:07:00,441 --> 00:07:02,561 So he invaded northern England. 94 00:07:02,641 --> 00:07:04,601 He laid siege to Norham Castle. 95 00:07:04,681 --> 00:07:07,961 He burned Newcastle to the ground, and he took Carlisle. 96 00:07:08,041 --> 00:07:11,361 This impassioned teenager meant business. 97 00:07:22,641 --> 00:07:26,041 Alexander was no stranger to the battlefield. 98 00:07:26,121 --> 00:07:28,281 Despite his tender years, 99 00:07:28,361 --> 00:07:30,921 he'd served his military apprenticeship aged only 14, 100 00:07:31,001 --> 00:07:33,641 when he led his father's army. 101 00:07:33,721 --> 00:07:37,321 After crushing Gaelic rebels in the north of Scotland, 102 00:07:37,401 --> 00:07:39,681 Alexander earned the respect of his men. 103 00:07:42,081 --> 00:07:43,521 Two years later, 104 00:07:43,601 --> 00:07:47,081 Alexander won the respect of the rebellious English barons 105 00:07:47,161 --> 00:07:48,641 as he took on their king. 106 00:07:50,281 --> 00:07:53,321 Now, with King John on the defensive, 107 00:07:53,401 --> 00:07:56,841 the barons in the north of England decided to switch allegiance 108 00:07:56,921 --> 00:07:59,121 and form a pact with Alexander. 109 00:08:01,361 --> 00:08:05,201 On 11 January 1216, in Melrose Abbey, 110 00:08:05,281 --> 00:08:09,601 the northern barons lined up to swear fealty to the King for their lands. 111 00:08:09,681 --> 00:08:11,961 And that king was the King of Scots. 112 00:08:12,041 --> 00:08:15,721 As far as Alexander was concerned, now that the northern barons 113 00:08:15,801 --> 00:08:19,281 had paid homage to him, the disputed border lands were his. 114 00:08:19,361 --> 00:08:22,281 He had avenged his father. 115 00:08:38,241 --> 00:08:41,201 While Alexander tightened his grip in the north, 116 00:08:41,281 --> 00:08:43,081 the English barons in the south 117 00:08:43,161 --> 00:08:45,801 turned to john's enemy, the French, for help. 118 00:08:48,441 --> 00:08:53,641 The barons invited Prince Louis to England to take the English crown. 119 00:08:56,001 --> 00:08:57,761 He accepted. 120 00:08:58,801 --> 00:09:00,241 In the spring of 1216, 121 00:09:00,321 --> 00:09:03,641 the French prince and his army sailed for England. 122 00:09:03,721 --> 00:09:06,801 Opportunity knocked again. 123 00:09:06,881 --> 00:09:10,081 Alexander planned to cut a deal with the French prince. 124 00:09:10,161 --> 00:09:14,961 In return for his support, Alexander intended to press Louis 125 00:09:15,041 --> 00:09:18,401 to recognise the disputed northern territories as Scottish. 126 00:09:18,481 --> 00:09:23,281 In a stroke, the English Crown's claims of overlordship 127 00:09:23,361 --> 00:09:24,881 would be swept aside. 128 00:09:24,961 --> 00:09:30,121 So he did something no Scottish monarch had done before, or since. 129 00:09:30,201 --> 00:09:33,761 He marched an army all the way to Dover. 130 00:09:42,481 --> 00:09:45,081 Meeting little resistance on his way south, 131 00:09:45,161 --> 00:09:47,321 he joined forces with the French army 132 00:09:47,401 --> 00:09:50,481 and together they laid siege to Dover Castle - 133 00:09:50,561 --> 00:09:53,241 the key to England. 134 00:09:54,601 --> 00:09:58,881 In all the wars with England, no other Scottish king ever came so far. 135 00:09:58,961 --> 00:10:01,201 It was an incredible achievement. 136 00:10:01,281 --> 00:10:04,361 Alexander's head must have swelled with every passing day. 137 00:10:04,441 --> 00:10:05,401 He was 17 138 00:10:05,481 --> 00:10:08,841 and he was on the brink of achieving his family's longest-held ambition. 139 00:10:08,921 --> 00:10:11,601 Half of Britain was nearly his. 140 00:10:11,681 --> 00:10:14,841 But then fate dealt a devastating blow. 141 00:10:21,761 --> 00:10:24,081 King John died. 142 00:10:24,161 --> 00:10:28,441 On the face of it, his death should have been good news for Alexander, 143 00:10:28,521 --> 00:10:33,361 but with John out of the way, the need for the barons' war vanished. 144 00:10:33,481 --> 00:10:38,361 The barons who had once opposed King John now flocked to his son's side - 145 00:10:38,441 --> 00:10:40,401 the new king, Henry III. 146 00:10:40,481 --> 00:10:43,321 Both Alexander, King of Scots, 147 00:10:43,401 --> 00:10:47,161 and Louis, the French prince, had outgrown their usefulness. 148 00:10:47,241 --> 00:10:50,841 The English barons sent them packing. 149 00:10:53,641 --> 00:10:58,201 There was no deal for Alexander - all of his grand ambitions fizzled out. 150 00:10:58,281 --> 00:11:00,881 Henry III reissued Magna Carta 151 00:11:00,961 --> 00:11:03,641 and all references to Alexander's claims were omitted - 152 00:11:03,721 --> 00:11:05,441 not even a footnote. 153 00:11:05,521 --> 00:11:09,241 Despite loud protests, the ground was cut from beneath his feet 154 00:11:09,321 --> 00:11:11,121 and he was left out in the cold. 155 00:11:17,881 --> 00:11:22,321 And it got worse. The Pope gave his backing to Henry III. 156 00:11:22,401 --> 00:11:25,921 Alexander found himself excommunicated... 157 00:11:28,481 --> 00:11:31,641 ...the powers of the Scottish church suspended. 158 00:11:33,281 --> 00:11:35,121 Back to square one. 159 00:11:37,961 --> 00:11:39,441 It stung. 160 00:11:39,521 --> 00:11:42,081 The Pope chastised him like a wayward son, 161 00:11:42,161 --> 00:11:46,241 ordering the truculent teenager to return his English conquests 162 00:11:46,321 --> 00:11:49,081 and pay homage for them to the King of England - 163 00:11:49,161 --> 00:11:52,281 the nine-year-old King of England. 164 00:11:57,361 --> 00:12:00,241 In Northampton, on 19 December 1217, 165 00:12:00,361 --> 00:12:06,201 Alexander, bereft of allies, paid homage to the child king, Henry III. 166 00:12:07,401 --> 00:12:12,001 His ambition of ruling the northern territories of England was over. 167 00:12:20,401 --> 00:12:23,681 Deflated, Alexander returned to Scotland. 168 00:12:23,761 --> 00:12:28,161 His ambitions shattered, his morale was at an all-time low. 169 00:12:28,241 --> 00:12:32,521 He came here to Arbroath Abbey to pay respects to his father William, 170 00:12:32,601 --> 00:12:35,721 who had also failed to regain the northern territories. 171 00:12:35,801 --> 00:12:39,761 If Alexander had learnt anything from the war in England, 172 00:12:39,841 --> 00:12:44,481 it was that the northern barons had felt English, not Scottish. 173 00:12:44,561 --> 00:12:48,001 They had chosen Henry as their king, not Alexander. 174 00:12:49,081 --> 00:12:53,321 The English barons knew instinctively who their king was. 175 00:12:53,401 --> 00:12:57,001 But could the same be said for the Scottish nobles? 176 00:13:03,961 --> 00:13:07,441 The Scottish nobles were split between two powerful factions. 177 00:13:07,521 --> 00:13:11,321 In the south were the descendants of Norman families, 178 00:13:11,401 --> 00:13:15,281 invited to settle in southern Scotland by the early Canmore kings. 179 00:13:16,361 --> 00:13:19,721 Helping to build many of the great Border abbeys and cathedrals, 180 00:13:19,801 --> 00:13:21,761 they changed the face of Scotland, 181 00:13:21,841 --> 00:13:26,281 transforming it into a more European-looking kingdom. 182 00:13:26,361 --> 00:13:30,321 In the north were the territories of powerful Gaelic earls, 183 00:13:30,401 --> 00:13:33,281 whose ancestors had forged the Kingdom of Scots. 184 00:13:33,361 --> 00:13:35,761 But these were the very Gaelic lords 185 00:13:35,841 --> 00:13:40,561 that Alexander's family had rejected in favour of a Norman future. 186 00:13:45,401 --> 00:13:48,961 The old Gaelic elite became sidelined. 187 00:13:49,041 --> 00:13:52,121 Once upon a time, they'd helped run the kingdom. 188 00:13:52,201 --> 00:13:55,361 Now they were called things like "divider of the King's meat", 189 00:13:55,441 --> 00:13:58,401 while the French-speaking brat pack of Norman lords 190 00:13:58,481 --> 00:14:01,841 received titles like "chancellor" and "constable of Scotland". 191 00:14:01,921 --> 00:14:06,041 One chronicler of the time wrote, "The modern kings of Scotland 192 00:14:06,161 --> 00:14:11,201 "count themselves as Frenchmen in race, manners, language and culture. 193 00:14:11,281 --> 00:14:14,521 "They keep only Frenchmen in their household and following, 194 00:14:14,601 --> 00:14:17,641 "and have reduced the Scots to utter servitude." 195 00:14:20,201 --> 00:14:23,201 Some Gaelic nobles adopted the Norman ways, 196 00:14:23,281 --> 00:14:26,201 but others returned to their own lands, 197 00:14:26,281 --> 00:14:29,121 beyond the reach of the King of Scots - 198 00:14:29,201 --> 00:14:35,601 the semi-independent Gaelic lands of Galloway, Argyll, Ross, 199 00:14:35,681 --> 00:14:37,521 Sutherland and Caithness, 200 00:14:37,601 --> 00:14:41,441 sometimes subject to the King of Scots, sometimes not. 201 00:14:41,521 --> 00:14:46,201 And beyond them, Alexander's rule petered out completely. 202 00:14:46,281 --> 00:14:48,921 The Hebrides and the Northern Isles - 203 00:14:49,001 --> 00:14:54,641 all lands claimed by another aspiring and aggressive kingdom... 204 00:14:54,721 --> 00:14:56,601 ...Norway. 205 00:14:58,001 --> 00:15:01,401 It was messy, too messy for Alexander's liking. 206 00:15:01,481 --> 00:15:05,161 He would never throw off English claims of overlordship 207 00:15:05,241 --> 00:15:10,481 until all the Scottish nobles acknowledged him as their king. 208 00:15:10,561 --> 00:15:13,321 It was time for a new approach and a new deal. 209 00:15:13,401 --> 00:15:15,881 Alexander decided to strike a balance 210 00:15:15,961 --> 00:15:18,761 between Norman innovation and Gaelic tradition. 211 00:15:18,841 --> 00:15:22,121 In his new Scotland, both would be allowed to flourish. 212 00:15:22,201 --> 00:15:25,481 He invited the Gaelic warlords back in from the cold. 213 00:15:25,561 --> 00:15:29,041 In return for some of the top jobs, they would fight his battles. 214 00:15:29,161 --> 00:15:32,841 They would help him conquer Scotland, territory by territory. 215 00:15:37,281 --> 00:15:39,241 His first test came from the north, 216 00:15:39,321 --> 00:15:43,441 when the men of Caithness roasted one of Alexander's bishops alive. 217 00:15:45,561 --> 00:15:48,481 Alexander returned the compliment in spades. 218 00:16:03,081 --> 00:16:07,481 In Ross, challengers to Alexander's succession rebelled against him. 219 00:16:07,561 --> 00:16:13,001 In response, Alexander's Gaelic warlords severed the leaders' heads 220 00:16:13,081 --> 00:16:15,401 and presented them to him as a gift. 221 00:16:25,521 --> 00:16:30,401 In the west, Alexander pressed on again, down the Great Glen to Lochaber 222 00:16:30,481 --> 00:16:34,401 and beyond to the Isles, to attack the lands of the Norwegian king. 223 00:16:35,441 --> 00:16:39,841 Mercy and compassion were never Alexander's strong points. 224 00:16:46,601 --> 00:16:49,601 The man who would be king of all Scotland 225 00:16:49,681 --> 00:16:54,041 proved to be utterly ruthless from the moment he set out to subdue it. 226 00:16:55,441 --> 00:16:58,841 A symbol of just how far he would go to secure his kingship 227 00:16:58,921 --> 00:17:01,361 was in his treatment of a baby girl. 228 00:17:01,441 --> 00:17:05,561 Alive, she represented a rival claim to his throne. 229 00:17:05,641 --> 00:17:07,561 In Alexander's eyes, 230 00:17:07,641 --> 00:17:11,481 she was just as much of a threat as any sword-wielding assassin. 231 00:17:11,561 --> 00:17:13,681 He took no chances. 232 00:17:15,801 --> 00:17:18,601 The infant was a distant relative of the Canmore line. 233 00:17:18,681 --> 00:17:22,321 Her fate was recorded by the Lanercost Chronicle. 234 00:17:23,681 --> 00:17:26,481 MAN: (READS) "The daughter, who had not long left her mother's womb, 235 00:17:26,561 --> 00:17:28,001 "innocent as she was, 236 00:17:28,081 --> 00:17:31,121 "was put to death in the view of the marketplace. 237 00:17:31,241 --> 00:17:36,041 "Her head was struck against the column, and her brains clashed out." 238 00:17:37,681 --> 00:17:40,361 NEIL OLIVER: Alexander now had what he wanted. 239 00:17:40,441 --> 00:17:44,841 Her elimination killed off the last threat to the Scottish Crown. 240 00:17:46,521 --> 00:17:50,721 This terrible and shocking act was remembered for generations to come. 241 00:17:50,801 --> 00:17:52,281 And that was the point. 242 00:17:52,361 --> 00:17:55,561 Loud and clear, the King of Scots let it be known, 243 00:17:55,641 --> 00:17:59,121 "This is what will happen to anyone who crosses my path, 244 00:17:59,201 --> 00:18:02,081 "however young, however innocent." 245 00:18:06,481 --> 00:18:09,281 But his actions had delivered results. 246 00:18:10,321 --> 00:18:12,041 Something new had emerged. 247 00:18:12,121 --> 00:18:16,361 Alexander's victories had not only brought peace, 248 00:18:16,441 --> 00:18:18,721 but something far more enduring. 249 00:18:20,921 --> 00:18:23,401 One people, one kingdom. 250 00:18:23,481 --> 00:18:26,041 Now everyone was subject to one king 251 00:18:26,121 --> 00:18:28,921 and that made them one people - Scots. 252 00:18:29,001 --> 00:18:33,561 Alexander had restored the esteem of his Kingdom to such an extent 253 00:18:33,641 --> 00:18:36,321 that King Henry III of England agreed to a border, 254 00:18:36,401 --> 00:18:39,721 established for the first time in 1237. 255 00:18:39,801 --> 00:18:42,681 Psychologically, that was a big step. 256 00:18:42,761 --> 00:18:44,881 Now Scots could say, 257 00:18:44,961 --> 00:18:51,561 "This is Scotland, that is England, and we are different." 258 00:19:08,041 --> 00:19:12,921 Alexander's 35-year reign ended when he died on 8 July 1249. 259 00:19:18,881 --> 00:19:22,881 His kingdom stretched all the way from Caithness in the north 260 00:19:22,961 --> 00:19:25,041 to the Solway Firth in the south. 261 00:19:25,121 --> 00:19:29,121 That was the legacy of Alexander II. 262 00:19:34,441 --> 00:19:37,321 (FOLK MUSIC PLAYS) 263 00:19:44,721 --> 00:19:51,161 J# Ex te lux oritur o dulcis Scocia 264 00:19:51,241 --> 00:19:57,041 J# Qua vere noscitur fulgens Norwagia 265 00:19:57,121 --> 00:20:00,161 J# Que cum transvehitur Trahis suspiria... # P 266 00:20:00,241 --> 00:20:02,561 In the years following his death, 267 00:20:02,641 --> 00:20:06,681 a stronger, more confident Scotland entered a golden age. 268 00:20:06,761 --> 00:20:10,961 His son, Alexander III, inherited the family firm. 269 00:20:11,041 --> 00:20:15,681 Times were good. Scotland prospered and culture flowered. 270 00:20:15,761 --> 00:20:18,441 England now saw Scotland differently. 271 00:20:18,521 --> 00:20:21,881 Suddenly, the Scots were worth getting into bed with. 272 00:20:21,961 --> 00:20:25,681 Claims of overlordship were replaced by offers of marriage. 273 00:20:27,481 --> 00:20:29,761 And so it was that at Christmas 1251, 274 00:20:29,841 --> 00:20:32,681 Alexander III, King of the Scots, 275 00:20:32,761 --> 00:20:36,361 married Princess Margaret of England. 276 00:20:36,441 --> 00:20:39,201 It was an ostentatious display of wealth and power 277 00:20:39,281 --> 00:20:40,721 and the message was clear - 278 00:20:40,801 --> 00:20:44,201 Scotland was determined to be seen as an equal partner, 279 00:20:44,281 --> 00:20:45,761 an equal kingdom. 280 00:20:51,961 --> 00:20:55,521 Eyeing the proceedings was the bride's brother, 281 00:20:55,601 --> 00:20:57,481 the young Prince Edward. 282 00:20:59,601 --> 00:21:01,321 Heir to the throne of England, 283 00:21:01,401 --> 00:21:05,641 this long-legged, blue-eyed boy was the epitome of an English prince. 284 00:21:07,961 --> 00:21:12,641 But more penetrating eyes could see beyond the image. 285 00:21:14,801 --> 00:21:17,561 This boy's life would be less than saintly. 286 00:21:17,641 --> 00:21:20,041 Edward had a taste for violence. 287 00:21:20,121 --> 00:21:23,041 The chronicler Matthew Paris famously recalled 288 00:21:23,121 --> 00:21:26,241 how the young prince got one of his followers to attack a man, 289 00:21:26,321 --> 00:21:29,281 cut off an ear and gouge out an eye. 290 00:21:29,361 --> 00:21:32,241 Paris wondered what kind of king he would make, 291 00:21:32,321 --> 00:21:34,841 "If he does these things when the wood is green, 292 00:21:34,921 --> 00:21:37,681 "what can be hoped for when it is seasoned?" 293 00:21:42,881 --> 00:21:47,841 As time passed, Edward grew into a formidable and skilful warrior. 294 00:21:47,921 --> 00:21:50,401 He indulged his lust for war 295 00:21:50,481 --> 00:21:53,241 by heading off on crusade to the Holy Land. 296 00:21:53,321 --> 00:21:56,241 On his return, he is every inch the hero, 297 00:21:56,321 --> 00:21:59,561 and at last crowned King of England. 298 00:22:06,321 --> 00:22:09,801 But while Edward's life took on the glow of a medieval boy's own story, 299 00:22:09,881 --> 00:22:13,761 Alexander III '5 life turned into Greek tragedy. 300 00:22:16,041 --> 00:22:17,801 In the space of nine years, 301 00:22:17,881 --> 00:22:21,161 Alexander III lost his wife - Edward's sister - 302 00:22:21,241 --> 00:22:23,281 and all three of his children. 303 00:22:23,361 --> 00:22:26,961 The Canmore dynasty was withering on the vine. 304 00:22:27,041 --> 00:22:31,281 Edward was shocked and sent a letter of condolence to his brother-in-law. 305 00:22:31,361 --> 00:22:33,761 Alexander's reply to that letter 306 00:22:33,841 --> 00:22:38,361 seems to suggest a genuine warmth between the two kings. 307 00:22:40,041 --> 00:22:42,961 (READS) "You have offered much solace for our grief by saying 308 00:22:43,041 --> 00:22:46,601 "that although death has borne away your kindred in these parts, 309 00:22:46,681 --> 00:22:49,641 "we are united together perpetually, God willing, 310 00:22:49,721 --> 00:22:52,121 "by the tie of indissoluble affection." 311 00:23:04,201 --> 00:23:10,361 Then, in March 1286, Edward heard about another death - Alexander. 312 00:23:10,441 --> 00:23:13,881 The King of Scots had finished his business in Edinburgh 313 00:23:13,961 --> 00:23:17,481 but he was desperate to travel the 20-odd miles to here at Kinghorn 314 00:23:17,561 --> 00:23:19,001 and the royal palace 315 00:23:19,081 --> 00:23:22,001 where his new young wife, Yolande, was waiting for him. 316 00:23:22,081 --> 00:23:27,001 His advisors begged him not to go - it was a foul night, dark and stormy - 317 00:23:27,081 --> 00:23:30,681 but the warnings went unheeded and somewhere near here 318 00:23:30,801 --> 00:23:35,041 Alexander became separated from his guides and was thrown from his horse. 319 00:23:35,121 --> 00:23:39,321 They found his body on the beach the next morning, the neck broken. 320 00:23:54,561 --> 00:23:57,361 Edward mourned the death of his brother-in-law, 321 00:23:57,441 --> 00:24:00,841 though some would say that he shed crocodile tears. 322 00:24:02,601 --> 00:24:05,481 He may have been related to Scotland's royal family - 323 00:24:05,561 --> 00:24:08,521 his father may have recognised Scotland's sovereignty - 324 00:24:08,601 --> 00:24:12,081 but Edward was descended from a long line of English kings 325 00:24:12,161 --> 00:24:13,841 who claimed to be her overlord, 326 00:24:13,921 --> 00:24:17,641 a claim that Edward had not forgotten. 327 00:24:17,721 --> 00:24:21,961 And now the kingdom's future hung by a thread. 328 00:24:25,201 --> 00:24:27,601 Next in line to the Scottish throne 329 00:24:27,681 --> 00:24:30,041 was Alexander's three-year-old granddaughter 330 00:24:30,121 --> 00:24:35,001 and Edward's grand-niece, Margaret, known as the Maid of Norway. 331 00:24:36,361 --> 00:24:37,801 The child Margaret 332 00:24:37,881 --> 00:24:40,561 was the last direct link with the Canmore dynasty. 333 00:24:40,641 --> 00:24:44,081 Her marriage to Edward's son was speedily arranged. 334 00:24:45,081 --> 00:24:47,321 As far as Edward was concerned, 335 00:24:47,401 --> 00:24:49,961 as soon as the ink on the marriage agreement was dry, 336 00:24:50,041 --> 00:24:52,161 Scotland would belong to him. 337 00:24:52,241 --> 00:24:53,841 The logic was simple. 338 00:24:53,921 --> 00:24:56,041 Medieval women were property. 339 00:24:56,121 --> 00:24:58,601 What they owned belonged to their husbands. 340 00:24:58,681 --> 00:25:01,201 What the Maid owned, once she was married, 341 00:25:01,281 --> 00:25:03,321 would belong to Edward's son. 342 00:25:09,761 --> 00:25:14,321 Then in October 1290, the Maid died. 343 00:25:15,521 --> 00:25:18,081 The house of Canmore was finished. 344 00:25:18,161 --> 00:25:21,281 Scotland was without a royal family. 345 00:25:21,361 --> 00:25:25,481 For Edward, this was an act of divine providence. 346 00:25:30,201 --> 00:25:34,241 The succession was in doubt because there were two leading contenders 347 00:25:34,321 --> 00:25:35,841 vying for the Scots throne. 348 00:25:35,921 --> 00:25:38,241 John Balliol and Robert Bruce the Elder 349 00:25:38,321 --> 00:25:41,401 were from two of Scotland's most powerful families. 350 00:25:42,921 --> 00:25:46,401 Both had enough military muscle to back their claim on the field. 351 00:25:46,481 --> 00:25:48,561 Scotland was divided. 352 00:25:48,641 --> 00:25:50,201 It fell to the Guardians - 353 00:25:50,281 --> 00:25:53,681 men chosen to govern the realm in the absence of a king - 354 00:25:53,761 --> 00:25:55,201 to prevent civil war. 355 00:25:55,281 --> 00:25:58,361 But they needed help. 356 00:25:58,441 --> 00:26:02,641 An impartial, friendly arbitrator. 357 00:26:02,721 --> 00:26:04,841 Someone with experience. 358 00:26:04,921 --> 00:26:09,041 Someone who could command respect. 359 00:26:09,121 --> 00:26:12,241 Who else but King Edward I? 360 00:26:12,321 --> 00:26:15,801 Internationally respected monarch, and master of the law. 361 00:26:15,881 --> 00:26:19,161 And, after all, relations between the two kingdoms were amicable 362 00:26:19,241 --> 00:26:20,721 and Edward was family. 363 00:26:20,801 --> 00:26:22,561 There was no reason to doubt him. 364 00:26:31,721 --> 00:26:35,041 Edward called for a parliament to be held on 6th May 1291 365 00:26:35,121 --> 00:26:38,281 to decide the future of the Scottish crown, 366 00:26:38,361 --> 00:26:40,721 and the location he chose was Norham - 367 00:26:40,801 --> 00:26:43,921 over there, on the English side of the River Tweed. 368 00:26:44,001 --> 00:26:46,521 The Scots smelled a rat. 369 00:26:46,601 --> 00:26:50,561 The future of Scotland to be decided in England? It wasn't right. 370 00:26:50,641 --> 00:26:54,761 So the Scots stalled on the Scottish side of the river. 371 00:26:54,841 --> 00:26:56,961 It was a stand-off. 372 00:26:59,681 --> 00:27:03,281 It didn't take Edward long to reveal his true colours, 373 00:27:03,361 --> 00:27:05,601 his real intention. 374 00:27:08,401 --> 00:27:12,121 He sent word to the Scots that the parliament would not start 375 00:27:12,201 --> 00:27:15,521 until the Guardians and the claimants for the throne of Scotland 376 00:27:15,601 --> 00:27:19,641 acknowledged his position as superior overlord of Scotland. 377 00:27:21,241 --> 00:27:23,481 The Scots were stunned. 378 00:27:23,561 --> 00:27:27,361 60 years of peace and now this. 379 00:27:31,641 --> 00:27:34,121 They would not give up their hard-won autonomy. 380 00:27:34,201 --> 00:27:37,601 One of the six Guardians of Scotland was Bishop Wishart of Glasgow. 381 00:27:37,681 --> 00:27:41,241 A shrewd and powerful figure, Wishart, a bulldog of a man. 382 00:27:41,321 --> 00:27:45,041 True to style, he delivered Scotland's response in person. 383 00:27:45,121 --> 00:27:47,281 He told Edward to his face. 384 00:27:48,721 --> 00:27:53,241 MAN: The Scottish Kingdom is not held in tribute or homage to anyone 385 00:27:53,321 --> 00:27:54,801 save God alone. 386 00:28:01,601 --> 00:28:05,201 Edward shrugged off Wishart's words of defiance. 387 00:28:05,281 --> 00:28:08,361 Although Bruce and Balliol had the only serious claims, 388 00:28:08,441 --> 00:28:11,361 Edward decided to change the rules again. 389 00:28:16,481 --> 00:28:20,681 He produced 11 more claimants from leading noble families and declared 390 00:28:20,761 --> 00:28:23,401 that if they didn't acknowledge his overlordship, 391 00:28:23,481 --> 00:28:25,761 they would be eliminated from the contest. 392 00:28:26,921 --> 00:28:28,961 The Scots were outmanoeuvred. 393 00:28:33,041 --> 00:28:36,521 If Bruce and Balliol wanted the job of King of Scots, 394 00:28:36,601 --> 00:28:39,921 they had no choice but to agree to Edward's terms. 395 00:28:42,521 --> 00:28:47,041 One by one, the now 13 claimants, along with the Guardians of Scotland, 396 00:28:47,121 --> 00:28:49,241 swore fealty to Edward, the King of England, 397 00:28:49,321 --> 00:28:54,281 as "superior and direct overlord of the kingdom of Scotland. 398 00:28:57,921 --> 00:29:00,641 Edward had what he wanted. 399 00:29:00,721 --> 00:29:03,681 It made no difference to him who was actually chosen. 400 00:29:03,761 --> 00:29:07,961 He already had all of the claimants' oaths of subservience in the bag. 401 00:29:08,041 --> 00:29:12,401 In the end, it was John Balliol who emerged as heir to the throne. 402 00:29:15,801 --> 00:29:18,361 Edward had it all stitched up. 403 00:29:19,601 --> 00:29:23,681 He was Scotland's superior overlord and not a drop of blood had been spilt. 404 00:29:25,601 --> 00:29:30,001 Wishart's deepest fears were being realised before his very eyes. 405 00:29:30,081 --> 00:29:31,881 He didn't hang around long. 406 00:29:31,961 --> 00:29:33,721 He'd seen enough. 407 00:29:33,801 --> 00:29:38,321 No longer a Guardian, Wishart returned to Glasgow. 408 00:29:38,401 --> 00:29:41,161 The new King of Scots, John Balliol, 409 00:29:41,241 --> 00:29:44,641 had to pay homage and swear fealty to Edward for his kingdom 410 00:29:44,721 --> 00:29:46,201 a second time. 411 00:29:46,281 --> 00:29:49,081 Edward's authority was absolute. 412 00:29:49,161 --> 00:29:53,081 He could do exactly as he wanted... 413 00:29:53,161 --> 00:29:54,721 and he did. 414 00:29:57,041 --> 00:30:01,401 In 1294, Edward demanded Scottish troops for his war against France. 415 00:30:01,481 --> 00:30:05,801 Then he summoned Balliol himself to fight. 416 00:30:05,881 --> 00:30:10,121 The King of Scots to do military service for the King of England? 417 00:30:10,201 --> 00:30:11,881 It seemed unthinkable. 418 00:30:14,001 --> 00:30:16,921 At a stroke, the achievements of the Canmores - 419 00:30:17,001 --> 00:30:21,401 the forging of Scotland, its status as a separate and distinct entity, 420 00:30:21,481 --> 00:30:23,121 was in peril. 421 00:30:24,161 --> 00:30:27,961 It was time for action. 422 00:30:28,041 --> 00:30:29,921 Bishop Wishart and the other Scots leaders 423 00:30:30,001 --> 00:30:33,361 realised Balliol was no match for Edward. 424 00:30:33,441 --> 00:30:37,761 At a parliament in Stirling, they debated what to do about Balliol. 425 00:30:48,801 --> 00:30:50,641 Wishart had no qualms. 426 00:30:50,721 --> 00:30:55,201 By the end of the meeting, the Bishop's radical view prevailed. 427 00:30:57,681 --> 00:30:59,681 A new Guardianship was established. 428 00:30:59,761 --> 00:31:01,481 A council of 12 men was selected 429 00:31:01,561 --> 00:31:04,921 to run the affairs of the kingdom in Balliol's name. 430 00:31:05,001 --> 00:31:08,601 Balliol was to be reduced to a figurehead, 431 00:31:08,681 --> 00:31:11,321 to be wheeled out to play the role of ruler. 432 00:31:12,361 --> 00:31:16,801 Now, the real governors of Scotland laid plans to fight Edward. 433 00:31:20,761 --> 00:31:23,801 As Wishart saw it, the council had two tasks - 434 00:31:23,881 --> 00:31:28,121 negotiate a treaty with France and prepare the country for war. 435 00:31:32,641 --> 00:31:34,441 France was Edward's enemy. 436 00:31:34,521 --> 00:31:36,361 Military support from them 437 00:31:36,441 --> 00:31:40,641 would mean the Scots stood a chance against Edward's forces. 438 00:31:40,721 --> 00:31:45,361 In the late summer of 1295, a delegation left Stirling for Paris 439 00:31:45,441 --> 00:31:48,521 to negotiate a treaty with the French king. 440 00:31:48,601 --> 00:31:50,161 The terms were simple. 441 00:31:50,241 --> 00:31:53,041 Should Edward attack France, 442 00:31:53,121 --> 00:31:55,641 then the Scots would wage war against the English. 443 00:31:55,721 --> 00:31:59,321 In return, the French promised support should Scotland be attacked. 444 00:31:59,401 --> 00:32:01,881 The French agreed. 445 00:32:01,961 --> 00:32:04,921 When Edward went to war against France in 1296, 446 00:32:05,001 --> 00:32:07,441 the Scots duly marched into England. 447 00:32:07,521 --> 00:32:09,561 The fuse was (it. 448 00:32:09,641 --> 00:32:14,521 Wishart waited for Edward's inevitable onslaught. It came. 449 00:32:14,601 --> 00:32:20,081 On 30 March 1296, Edward's army crossed into Scotland. 450 00:32:27,481 --> 00:32:31,001 Edward wasn't a man to do things by halves. 451 00:32:31,081 --> 00:32:33,161 At around 30,000 strong, 452 00:32:33,241 --> 00:32:36,281 this was the largest army that had ever been sent north. 453 00:32:36,361 --> 00:32:39,521 First stop, Berwick-upon-Tweed. 454 00:32:44,041 --> 00:32:46,801 Just as the Easter celebrations were drawing to a close, 455 00:32:46,881 --> 00:32:48,281 Edward crossed the Tweed. 456 00:32:48,361 --> 00:32:51,881 The feeble, timber fortifications offered no resistance. 457 00:32:51,961 --> 00:32:56,401 What followed was one of the worst massacres in British medieval history. 458 00:33:01,081 --> 00:33:05,561 For two days, streams of blood flowed from the bodies of the slain. 459 00:33:05,641 --> 00:33:07,281 For his tyrannous rage, 460 00:33:07,361 --> 00:33:11,201 he ordered 7,500 souls of both sexes to be massacred. 461 00:33:15,161 --> 00:33:19,201 Mills could be turned round by the flow of their blood. 462 00:33:25,361 --> 00:33:27,681 Despite the surrender of the local garrison, 463 00:33:27,761 --> 00:33:31,281 Edward set about the wholesale slaughter of the town's population. 464 00:33:31,361 --> 00:33:33,641 The orgy of violence only came to an end 465 00:33:33,721 --> 00:33:36,241 when the frantic pleading of local clergy 466 00:33:36,321 --> 00:33:38,801 moved Edward to show at least some pity. 467 00:33:38,881 --> 00:33:41,761 But Berwick was just a warm-up. 468 00:33:51,641 --> 00:33:54,401 Edward's reputation would now precede him, 469 00:33:54,481 --> 00:33:57,241 as he advanced north into the heartlands of Scotland. 470 00:33:57,321 --> 00:34:02,321 After defeating the large but inexperienced Scots army at Dunbar, 471 00:34:02,401 --> 00:34:04,681 resistance to Edward buckled. 472 00:34:04,761 --> 00:34:06,641 Castle after castle fell. 473 00:34:08,401 --> 00:34:11,601 Most of the Scots nobility were captured and imprisoned. 474 00:34:11,681 --> 00:34:14,561 It was over. 475 00:34:14,641 --> 00:34:17,401 Now, Edward wanted the man he believed responsible - 476 00:34:17,481 --> 00:34:21,001 Balliol, the lamb caught amongst the wolves. 477 00:34:26,201 --> 00:34:29,401 It took Balliol eight days to negotiate his surrender, 478 00:34:29,481 --> 00:34:33,441 which was hardly surprising, as he did have a lot of explaining to do. 479 00:34:33,521 --> 00:34:35,121 Edward was angry. 480 00:34:35,201 --> 00:34:38,161 Balliol had acted contemptibly and illegally. 481 00:34:38,241 --> 00:34:41,841 He was Edward's man, and yet he had conspired with the French 482 00:34:41,921 --> 00:34:43,921 and attacked English soil. 483 00:34:44,001 --> 00:34:47,361 He was a defaulting vassal who would have to be punished, 484 00:34:47,441 --> 00:34:50,041 along with the Scots if they refused to submit. 485 00:34:50,121 --> 00:34:52,561 But Edward wanted more than a simple surrender. 486 00:34:52,641 --> 00:34:54,201 He wanted a show. 487 00:35:01,561 --> 00:35:05,521 Paraded as a penitent before Edward, Balliol was stripped of his kingship, 488 00:35:05,601 --> 00:35:08,441 the royal insignia ripped from his clothing, 489 00:35:08,521 --> 00:35:10,921 earning him the cruel nickname Toom Tabard - 490 00:35:11,001 --> 00:35:14,441 "empty suit", King Nobody. 491 00:35:16,041 --> 00:35:19,881 Broken and humiliated, Balliol was sent to the Tower of London 492 00:35:19,961 --> 00:35:23,841 and then to exile in France. 493 00:35:23,921 --> 00:35:27,881 Not content to humiliate a man, Edward plundered the country. 494 00:35:27,961 --> 00:35:29,921 He set about systematically stripping Scotland 495 00:35:30,001 --> 00:35:33,721 of all her symbols of sovereignty and independence - 496 00:35:33,801 --> 00:35:35,241 the crown jewels, 497 00:35:35,321 --> 00:35:37,161 the Black Rood of St Margaret, 498 00:35:37,241 --> 00:35:40,801 the holiest and most venerated relic of Scotland... 499 00:35:41,841 --> 00:35:47,161 ...and the Stone of Destiny, the centrepiece of Scottish king-making. 500 00:35:53,481 --> 00:35:54,921 In the months that followed, 501 00:35:55,001 --> 00:35:57,921 Edward decided to take a tour of his newly won kingdom. 502 00:35:59,441 --> 00:36:01,161 But this was no tourist trip. 503 00:36:02,721 --> 00:36:07,041 City by city, burgh by burgh, castle by castle, 504 00:36:07,121 --> 00:36:10,521 Edward forced the Scottish nobles to sign up to his new regime... 505 00:36:11,961 --> 00:36:13,841 ...to put their names to what became 506 00:36:13,921 --> 00:36:16,721 the most infamous document in Scottish history. 507 00:36:22,841 --> 00:36:24,481 The Ragman Roll. 508 00:36:26,721 --> 00:36:30,761 Well, the Ragman Roll is a list of the Scottish nobles 509 00:36:30,841 --> 00:36:35,801 who had to give homage to Edward I of England in 1296. 510 00:36:35,881 --> 00:36:40,281 So, it's got about... nearly 1,900 names on it. 511 00:36:40,361 --> 00:36:43,481 NEIL OLIVER: What is contained in all these endless lines of text? 512 00:36:43,561 --> 00:36:45,641 What exactly are they signing up to? 513 00:36:45,721 --> 00:36:48,761 Well, basically, they had to pay homage to Edward I, 514 00:36:48,841 --> 00:36:51,721 who had defeated the Scots at the Battle of Dunbar, 515 00:36:51,801 --> 00:36:54,961 and he was essentially the King of Scots now, 516 00:36:55,041 --> 00:36:59,481 and they had to acknowledge him as their lord and master. 517 00:36:59,561 --> 00:37:02,041 What are the famous names that would stand out? 518 00:37:02,121 --> 00:37:05,201 Well, you've got a full panoply of the Scottish nobility. 519 00:37:05,281 --> 00:37:08,041 You've got the competitors for the throne, 520 00:37:08,121 --> 00:37:11,801 the head of the house of Balliol, Bruce, the Stuarts are there, 521 00:37:11,881 --> 00:37:15,121 there's a complete set of bishops, people like Bishop Wishart, 522 00:37:15,201 --> 00:37:18,201 and then there is, of course, a lot of knights, if you like, 523 00:37:18,281 --> 00:37:23,081 and lesser people who held land in Scotland at that time. 524 00:37:26,201 --> 00:37:29,281 But it isn't just the names of the nobility and bishops 525 00:37:29,361 --> 00:37:31,321 that appear on the Ragman Roll. 526 00:37:31,401 --> 00:37:35,361 Representatives across the Scottish kingdom, religious and political, 527 00:37:35,441 --> 00:37:38,041 were forced to fix their seals of submission. 528 00:37:39,961 --> 00:37:45,881 Scotland was without a king. Beaten, broken and humiliated. 529 00:37:45,961 --> 00:37:50,401 The winter of 1296 was one of the country's darkest. 530 00:37:50,481 --> 00:37:54,041 Edward left the governance of Scotland to two trusted lieutenants 531 00:37:54,121 --> 00:37:57,481 and returned to where he'd left off- fighting the French. 532 00:37:57,561 --> 00:38:00,321 As he crossed the Tweed back into England, he quipped, 533 00:38:00,401 --> 00:38:04,161 "A man does good work when he rids himself of shit." 534 00:38:11,201 --> 00:38:15,041 But in the rush to be rid of Scotland, Edward missed something. 535 00:38:15,121 --> 00:38:19,401 Scotland had never been directly ruled by an English king, 536 00:38:19,481 --> 00:38:22,681 so when Edward ordered the Scots to join his war in France, 537 00:38:22,761 --> 00:38:24,281 the Scots grew resentful. 538 00:38:26,521 --> 00:38:30,081 And when Edward imposed English taxes to pay for it, 539 00:38:30,161 --> 00:38:32,121 the Scots grew rebellious. 540 00:38:34,561 --> 00:38:38,721 Alexander II had given the Scots a united kingdom with a border, 541 00:38:38,801 --> 00:38:41,161 a sense of who they were. 542 00:38:41,241 --> 00:38:44,841 But within the space of a decade, all of this was swept away. 543 00:38:44,921 --> 00:38:47,801 Edward had already absorbed Wales into his kingdom 544 00:38:47,881 --> 00:38:50,321 and conscripted the Welsh into his armies. 545 00:38:50,401 --> 00:38:53,761 Now he proposed to do exactly the same thing with Scotland. 546 00:38:53,841 --> 00:38:56,601 And it was the prospect of being absorbed by England, 547 00:38:56,681 --> 00:38:59,321 of being forced to fight Edward's battles, 548 00:38:59,401 --> 00:39:01,761 that tipped the Scots over the edge. 549 00:39:14,201 --> 00:39:17,761 The first spark of resistance was struck in the Gaelic north. 550 00:39:17,881 --> 00:39:22,161 It was a small act of defiance, a single standard raised against Edward, 551 00:39:22,241 --> 00:39:25,961 but soon a myriad of flames engulfed the kingdom, 552 00:39:26,041 --> 00:39:29,121 and among them was one man, William Wallace. 553 00:39:36,921 --> 00:39:40,041 William Wallace. The Wallace. 554 00:39:40,161 --> 00:39:44,281 For many, he's the ultimate freedom fighter, for others, a terrorist. 555 00:39:44,361 --> 00:39:47,401 He is the enigmatic hero who appears from nowhere 556 00:39:47,481 --> 00:39:50,201 to liberate his people and to shape history. 557 00:39:50,281 --> 00:39:52,761 The Wallace story is one of the defining legends 558 00:39:52,841 --> 00:39:56,281 of Scottish identity and the epitome of Scotland's story. 559 00:39:56,361 --> 00:40:01,481 And yet, with all the mythologising, we've lost sight of Wallace the man - 560 00:40:01,561 --> 00:40:05,801 a remarkable man, but a man nonetheless. 561 00:40:11,281 --> 00:40:13,201 The younger son of an obscure knight, 562 00:40:13,281 --> 00:40:16,681 Wallace's destiny would be shaped less by himself, 563 00:40:16,761 --> 00:40:18,561 more by the needs of others. 564 00:40:20,361 --> 00:40:21,801 And what Bishop Wishart, 565 00:40:21,881 --> 00:40:25,281 the self-appointed chief of the Scottish resistance movement, 566 00:40:25,361 --> 00:40:27,681 needed right now was time. 567 00:40:32,041 --> 00:40:34,761 Scotland had run out of leaders. 568 00:40:34,841 --> 00:40:37,001 Most of her nobles were either imprisoned 569 00:40:37,081 --> 00:40:39,961 or had been forced to fix their seals to the Ragman Rolls. 570 00:40:40,041 --> 00:40:42,281 Wishart could have been under no illusions 571 00:40:42,361 --> 00:40:44,681 when the pair met here, at Glasgow Cathedral. 572 00:40:44,761 --> 00:40:46,721 Wallace was no leader of armies, 573 00:40:46,801 --> 00:40:50,601 but he was smart and he could fight and he had the popular touch. 574 00:40:50,681 --> 00:40:53,201 Most importantly, he could buy time for Wishart 575 00:40:53,281 --> 00:40:56,401 while the Bishop tried to raise the Scots nobles in Ayrshire. 576 00:40:56,481 --> 00:40:58,481 An English chronicler put it simply - 577 00:40:58,561 --> 00:41:01,761 "Wishart caused a certain bloody man, William Wallace, 578 00:41:01,841 --> 00:41:05,081 "who had formerly been a chief of brigands in Scotland, 579 00:41:05,161 --> 00:41:08,801 "to revolt against the King and assemble people in his support." 580 00:41:08,881 --> 00:41:11,961 And that's exactly what Wallace did. 581 00:41:20,401 --> 00:41:22,801 After killing the hated English sheriff of Lanark, 582 00:41:22,881 --> 00:41:26,361 the very symbol of Edward's oppressive regime, 583 00:41:26,441 --> 00:41:30,081 Wallace's rising swiftly gained momentum. 584 00:41:30,161 --> 00:41:34,361 But the men who flocked to Wallace's side weren't of noble blood. 585 00:41:38,441 --> 00:41:41,681 His army were peasants - humble folk, the middling sort. 586 00:41:41,801 --> 00:41:45,881 The kind of people who'd had first-hand experience of Edward's policies 587 00:41:45,961 --> 00:41:48,961 of wringing as many men and taxes out of Scotland as he could. 588 00:41:53,481 --> 00:41:55,561 If Wallace's army was to stand any chance 589 00:41:55,681 --> 00:42:00,321 against Edward's mighty war machine, they needed space, open space, 590 00:42:00,401 --> 00:42:01,841 and time to train. 591 00:42:04,681 --> 00:42:06,961 Wallace knew this would be no easy task. 592 00:42:07,041 --> 00:42:11,121 His army was used to the hit-and-run tactics of guerrilla warfare. 593 00:42:11,201 --> 00:42:13,681 They had little experience of the battlefield. 594 00:42:13,761 --> 00:42:19,001 The best he could offer his men was discipline. 595 00:42:21,041 --> 00:42:24,961 By the late summer of 1297, Wallace's army was ready. 596 00:42:25,041 --> 00:42:29,161 He joined forces with Andrew Murray, a nobleman's son 597 00:42:29,241 --> 00:42:32,961 who had led a successful revolt in the north. 598 00:42:33,041 --> 00:42:38,001 Together, they marched their men to intercept the English at Stirling. 599 00:42:41,361 --> 00:42:43,601 It was only then, when the English woke up, 600 00:42:43,721 --> 00:42:47,721 they realised the handful of rebels had swollen into a respectable-sized army. 601 00:42:47,801 --> 00:42:50,441 But the English captain, Warenne, wasn't alarmed. 602 00:42:50,521 --> 00:42:53,081 His army, with its impressive heavy cavalry, 603 00:42:53,161 --> 00:42:55,161 could take on any peasant rabble. 604 00:42:56,481 --> 00:43:00,521 To confront the Scots, the English army had to cross the River Forth. 605 00:43:00,601 --> 00:43:02,401 Easier said than done. 606 00:43:02,481 --> 00:43:05,361 Deep and impassable, the Forth rises in the west 607 00:43:05,441 --> 00:43:07,601 and flows east to meet the North Sea, 608 00:43:07,681 --> 00:43:09,961 almost cutting the country in half. 609 00:43:14,081 --> 00:43:17,761 The crossing point - a narrow, wooden bridge at Stirling. 610 00:43:21,881 --> 00:43:25,961 When the English arrived, Wallace and Murray were waiting. 611 00:43:26,041 --> 00:43:29,521 They knew the land and they understood the strategic importance 612 00:43:29,601 --> 00:43:32,561 of the bridge across the Forth as the gateway to the north. 613 00:43:32,641 --> 00:43:35,521 They positioned their army on the slopes of Abbey Craig, 614 00:43:35,601 --> 00:43:37,441 about a mile from the bridge. 615 00:43:46,401 --> 00:43:51,801 On September 11th 1297, both armies faced each other. 616 00:43:56,241 --> 00:44:00,761 In bald terms, Warenne told the Scots to surrender. 617 00:44:02,441 --> 00:44:06,001 Wallace told them, "Go back and tell your people 618 00:44:06,081 --> 00:44:08,481 "that we have not come for the benefit of peace, 619 00:44:08,561 --> 00:44:12,641 "but to do battle to defend ourselves and liberate our kingdom. 620 00:44:12,721 --> 00:44:17,041 "Let them come to us, and we will prove this in their very beards." 621 00:44:19,641 --> 00:44:23,681 The English horsemen began to ride across the bridge. 622 00:44:23,801 --> 00:44:28,441 Warenne suddenly exploded - he hadn't actually given the order to cross. 623 00:44:28,521 --> 00:44:31,361 So he made his men come back to his side and regroup. 624 00:44:31,441 --> 00:44:35,041 Then, on his command, they began to cross for a second time. 625 00:44:35,121 --> 00:44:37,081 Wallace must have been amazed 626 00:44:37,161 --> 00:44:39,841 by this comic display of arrogance and complacency. 627 00:44:39,921 --> 00:44:42,361 But Warenne didn't care how it looked. 628 00:44:42,441 --> 00:44:44,521 He didn't rate Wallace's army. 629 00:44:44,601 --> 00:44:46,401 As far as he was concerned, 630 00:44:46,481 --> 00:44:50,761 this would be little more than a good training exercise for the men. 631 00:44:54,601 --> 00:44:56,841 What they learned was how to die. 632 00:44:59,121 --> 00:45:02,241 The English were trapped, 633 00:45:02,321 --> 00:45:04,881 caught in the loop of the river with nowhere to go. 634 00:45:13,601 --> 00:45:15,481 As the chronicler Guisborough said, 635 00:45:15,561 --> 00:45:18,041 "There was indeed no better place in all the land 636 00:45:18,121 --> 00:45:21,441 "to deliver the English into the hands of the Scots, 637 00:45:21,521 --> 00:45:24,001 ”and so many into the power of the few. ” 638 00:45:37,081 --> 00:45:42,401 By nightfall, 5,000 English infantry and 100 knights had perished. 639 00:45:43,961 --> 00:45:47,961 Among the English dead lay the body of the hated treasurer. 640 00:45:48,041 --> 00:45:49,721 He'd been flayed alive. 641 00:45:49,801 --> 00:45:52,841 The treasurer had taken the skin off Scots' backs, 642 00:45:52,921 --> 00:45:55,641 and now they had done the same to him in return. 643 00:45:55,721 --> 00:45:59,761 Wallace kept the skin, had it fashioned into a sword belt, 644 00:45:59,841 --> 00:46:02,041 a memento of the day's victory. 645 00:46:11,801 --> 00:46:14,081 The defeat was a huge loss of face for Edward. 646 00:46:14,161 --> 00:46:17,281 The great English army, the vast, Edwardian war machine 647 00:46:17,361 --> 00:46:20,561 that had conquered Wales, that was famed throughout Europe, 648 00:46:20,641 --> 00:46:21,641 had been defeated. 649 00:46:21,721 --> 00:46:25,121 But hardest of all to swallow was the fact it had been defeated 650 00:46:25,201 --> 00:46:29,401 by a bunch of peasant amateurs - Scots peasant amateurs, to boot. 651 00:46:29,481 --> 00:46:30,521 It was at this time 652 00:46:30,601 --> 00:46:33,721 that Edward first heard the name William Wallace. 653 00:46:33,801 --> 00:46:37,281 We can be sure of one thing - he'd never forget it. 654 00:46:46,441 --> 00:46:49,201 The Scottish nobles were dumbfounded. 655 00:46:49,281 --> 00:46:52,961 Now they were forced to rub shoulders with the middling folk 656 00:46:53,041 --> 00:46:55,441 to make this man Guardian of Scotland. 657 00:46:59,041 --> 00:47:01,841 Murray, the noble who commanded the army with Wallace, 658 00:47:01,921 --> 00:47:04,041 would have been their preferred choice, 659 00:47:04,121 --> 00:47:07,561 but his death after Stirling Bridge ruled that out. 660 00:47:11,481 --> 00:47:12,921 Here at Kirk of the Forest, 661 00:47:13,001 --> 00:47:15,841 Wallace the outlaw became Sir William Wallace, 662 00:47:15,921 --> 00:47:17,401 the Guardian of Scotland. 663 00:47:17,481 --> 00:47:19,761 He was the hero of the hour, for now. 664 00:47:21,321 --> 00:47:24,721 But despite his victory, there were those who didn't approve 665 00:47:24,801 --> 00:47:27,281 of a mere commoner being given such a big job. 666 00:47:27,361 --> 00:47:30,761 After all, what did he know about politics and kings? 667 00:47:30,841 --> 00:47:32,881 But none of that mattered at the moment. 668 00:47:32,961 --> 00:47:35,881 What did matter was that he had proved himself in battle 669 00:47:35,961 --> 00:47:37,641 and his job was only half clone. 670 00:47:37,721 --> 00:47:41,241 Only when John Balliol was restored to the throne 671 00:47:41,321 --> 00:47:43,121 could Scotland be free. 672 00:47:49,841 --> 00:47:54,201 Wallace had proved to be Edward's equal in every regard except status. 673 00:47:54,281 --> 00:47:59,961 He was brutal, he was ruthless, he fought on Edward's terms. 674 00:48:00,041 --> 00:48:02,081 He played dirty-. 675 00:48:02,161 --> 00:48:04,841 The defeat at Stirling Bridge had angered Edward. 676 00:48:04,921 --> 00:48:07,081 Now he wanted revenge. 677 00:48:11,481 --> 00:48:13,961 By July, his vast military machine, 678 00:48:14,041 --> 00:48:18,961 composed mainly of newly conquered Welsh, crossed into Scotland. 679 00:48:19,041 --> 00:48:23,641 As Edward advanced north, he encountered a wasted landscape. 680 00:48:23,721 --> 00:48:25,161 There was no sign of Wallace, 681 00:48:25,241 --> 00:48:28,081 but he could see his handiwork in every burnt-out farm. 682 00:48:28,161 --> 00:48:31,201 Weeks passed, there was still no sign of him. 683 00:48:31,281 --> 00:48:34,281 But then the logic of Wallace's strategy became obvious. 684 00:48:34,361 --> 00:48:37,561 Denied food supplies, the English army started to starve, 685 00:48:37,641 --> 00:48:41,241 and fighting broke out between the English and Welsh infantry. 686 00:48:43,641 --> 00:48:46,241 Edward's army was close to disintegration 687 00:48:46,321 --> 00:48:50,761 when it finally arrived at Linlithgow's town walls. 688 00:48:50,841 --> 00:48:54,481 He realised he might have to abandon the war altogether, 689 00:48:54,561 --> 00:48:57,841 unless he could find Wallace, and fast. 690 00:48:59,401 --> 00:49:04,241 The scouts reported that the Scots army was less than 20 miles away, at Falkirk. 691 00:49:04,321 --> 00:49:07,441 Edward force-marched his men until they came upon Wallace. 692 00:49:07,521 --> 00:49:12,201 The Scots were dug in - four schiltroms, bristling with spears. 693 00:49:12,281 --> 00:49:15,201 Edward's propaganda machine had gone into overdrive. 694 00:49:15,281 --> 00:49:18,441 The English troops weren't expecting to see Wallace the man, 695 00:49:18,521 --> 00:49:21,801 rather, Wallace the monster, 696 00:49:21,881 --> 00:49:24,281 an ogre who would quite literally skin them alive. 697 00:49:24,361 --> 00:49:28,601 And of course, it was Edward who had unleashed the monster. 698 00:49:28,681 --> 00:49:33,001 He had unmade Scotland, taking it apart bit by bit, 699 00:49:33,081 --> 00:49:35,441 and Wallace was the result. 700 00:49:45,321 --> 00:49:48,801 Edward was unconcerned - it would all be over soon. 701 00:49:48,881 --> 00:49:51,321 And it was, in a hail of arrows. 702 00:49:51,401 --> 00:49:55,081 Edward's archers began the slaughter of the infantry. 703 00:49:55,161 --> 00:49:56,721 It was said the Scots fell 704 00:49:56,801 --> 00:50:00,401 like blossom in an orchard when the fruit had ripened. 705 00:50:00,481 --> 00:50:02,601 The cavalry completed the rout. 706 00:50:16,321 --> 00:50:18,001 Wallace resigned as Guardian. 707 00:50:18,081 --> 00:50:20,081 Scotland descended into five years 708 00:50:20,161 --> 00:50:23,441 of exhausting, costly, protracted fighting. 709 00:50:23,521 --> 00:50:27,001 Then the Scots lost their ally, the French. 710 00:50:27,081 --> 00:50:30,841 Alone, they could not defeat Edward. 711 00:50:30,921 --> 00:50:35,801 It was pointless going on - the Scots sought terms. 712 00:50:35,881 --> 00:50:39,041 Equally, Edward was tired and old. 713 00:50:39,121 --> 00:50:40,601 He was in his 605, 714 00:50:40,681 --> 00:50:43,521 and the war was burning a very large hole in his pocket. 715 00:50:43,601 --> 00:50:46,761 He wanted to draw a line under the whole sorry business. 716 00:50:46,841 --> 00:50:50,521 But naturally, he wanted that on his own terms. 717 00:50:50,601 --> 00:50:52,561 He wanted Wallace. 718 00:50:59,281 --> 00:51:02,681 "As for William Wallace," said Edward, 719 00:51:02,761 --> 00:51:06,481 "it is agreed that he shall render himself up at the mercy and will 720 00:51:06,561 --> 00:51:10,241 "of our sovereign lord the King, as it shall seem good to him." 721 00:51:14,081 --> 00:51:17,561 Wallace's fate was sealed the following month. 722 00:51:17,641 --> 00:51:20,081 At the St Andrew's Parliament of 1304, 723 00:51:20,161 --> 00:51:22,561 he was declared an outlaw by the Scots nobles. 724 00:51:24,041 --> 00:51:28,601 129 landowners took Edward as their liege lord. 725 00:51:31,761 --> 00:51:35,041 Among their ranks was the man who had helped create Wallace... 726 00:51:37,081 --> 00:51:41,281 ...Robert Wishart, the Bishop of Glasgow. 727 00:51:44,241 --> 00:51:48,841 In truth, the document they signed up to, the Ordinances of 1305, 728 00:51:48,921 --> 00:51:52,281 marked the completion of the second conquest of Scotland. 729 00:51:52,401 --> 00:51:57,601 And this time, there was no mention of a king or a kingdom, merely a land. 730 00:52:14,841 --> 00:52:18,841 As for Wallace, Edward had singled him out for special treatment. 731 00:52:18,921 --> 00:52:20,441 No words of peace were offered. 732 00:52:20,521 --> 00:52:24,241 Wallace must submit to Edward's pleasure. 733 00:52:25,281 --> 00:52:29,081 Edward played every dirty trick in the book. 734 00:52:29,161 --> 00:52:31,801 He threatened and blackmailed Wallace's friends, 735 00:52:31,881 --> 00:52:33,921 forcing them to hunt down the fugitive. 736 00:52:39,521 --> 00:52:42,201 Finally, Wallace was betrayed. 737 00:52:44,641 --> 00:52:48,721 On 3rd August 1305, he was seized in a house near Glasgow. 738 00:52:48,801 --> 00:52:53,001 According to an English source, Wallace was surprised in his bed. 739 00:52:55,481 --> 00:52:57,441 In the Scots version of what happened, 740 00:52:57,521 --> 00:53:01,201 Wallace put up a huge fight before he was eventually taken. 741 00:53:05,721 --> 00:53:09,561 Three weeks later, Wallace stood here, Westminster Hall, 742 00:53:09,641 --> 00:53:11,281 before Edward's judges. 743 00:53:11,361 --> 00:53:13,921 The King, ever the master of the law, 744 00:53:14,001 --> 00:53:17,521 was determined to destroy Wallace's reputation. 745 00:53:17,601 --> 00:53:20,561 A crown of laurel leaves had been placed on his head, 746 00:53:20,641 --> 00:53:25,401 to mock, it was said, Wallace's boast that one day he would wear a crown. 747 00:53:25,481 --> 00:53:29,521 As an outlaw, he was already legally condemned - 748 00:53:29,601 --> 00:53:33,241 no plea, no jury, no witnesses, no defence. 749 00:53:33,321 --> 00:53:35,801 He was merely presented with the indictment. 750 00:53:37,921 --> 00:53:41,081 That he had notoriously committed killings, arson, 751 00:53:41,161 --> 00:53:42,721 destruction of property, 752 00:53:42,801 --> 00:53:45,801 and sacrilege during the war with England. 753 00:53:45,881 --> 00:53:48,481 That he had assumed the title of Guardian 754 00:53:48,561 --> 00:53:51,841 and seduced the Scots into an alliance with France. 755 00:53:51,921 --> 00:53:54,081 The charge of treason was an innovation, 756 00:53:54,161 --> 00:53:56,761 but if it was on the King's Record, then it was law. 757 00:53:56,841 --> 00:53:59,521 If Edward said he was a traitor, then he was. 758 00:53:59,601 --> 00:54:01,721 It was only then that Wallace spoke. 759 00:54:01,801 --> 00:54:05,441 He had never been a traitor. He had never sworn allegiance to Edward. 760 00:54:05,521 --> 00:54:09,601 Like Scotland, Wallace was trapped by Edward's laws. 761 00:54:09,681 --> 00:54:12,401 The outcome was a forgone conclusion. 762 00:54:16,081 --> 00:54:18,881 He suffered a traitor's death. 763 00:54:18,961 --> 00:54:20,801 There was no Christian burial. 764 00:54:20,881 --> 00:54:24,841 Wallace's boiled head was spiked on London Bridge 765 00:54:24,921 --> 00:54:26,641 and his quartered body sent north 766 00:54:26,721 --> 00:54:28,961 to Newcastle, Berwick, Stirling and Perth 767 00:54:29,081 --> 00:54:33,601 as an example of the fate that would befall anyone who challenged Edward. 768 00:54:43,801 --> 00:54:45,521 What are we to make of Wallace? 769 00:54:45,601 --> 00:54:50,401 What is important is what he became after his death. 770 00:54:50,481 --> 00:54:55,001 He became a brand, repackaged and rolled out in the centuries to come 771 00:54:55,081 --> 00:54:58,441 to suit both nationalist and unionist agendas. 772 00:54:59,521 --> 00:55:04,681 700 years later, the basic vision of a free, independent Scotland, 773 00:55:04,761 --> 00:55:06,681 for which William Wallace fought, 774 00:55:06,761 --> 00:55:09,641 still haunts the collective Scots imagination. 775 00:55:13,801 --> 00:55:19,001 For many, Wallace remains Scotland's greatest patriot. 776 00:55:19,081 --> 00:55:21,521 But what had he actually achieved? 777 00:55:23,001 --> 00:55:25,241 In the end, Wallace had failed. 778 00:55:25,321 --> 00:55:29,481 Scotland's king remained in exile, her nobles under oath. 779 00:55:29,561 --> 00:55:33,441 Edward I, the Hammer of the Scots, had conquered Scotland. 780 00:55:33,521 --> 00:55:36,801 You might even say he had turned it into an English region. 781 00:55:36,881 --> 00:55:40,001 But in his fixation with the crown and the kingdom, 782 00:55:40,081 --> 00:55:42,161 he'd underestimated the people. 783 00:55:42,241 --> 00:55:44,641 Edward's determination to crush them 784 00:55:44,721 --> 00:55:44,641 had served only to define for the Scots who they really were.